The Imperfect Eyes We See Through
by BlueCookiesAreBae
Summary: In a world where "Imperfects" and "Perfects" are divided with a knife we call genetic modification, our eyes can only see truth within the dark. When "Perfect" Annabeth Chase is partnered up with the "Imperfect" Percy Jackson, her world takes a turn. But it's really him and the boy she met in the back alley that truly cleared her eyes. Percabeth. AU.
1. Maybe I'll Surprise You, Huh?

_Worthless._

 _Imperfect._

 _Useless._

 _Ugly._

The names just keep trickling in his ears, every week, every day, every minute, every second.

 _Waste._

 _Inferior._

 _Flawed._

 _Faulty._

One would think that it would hurt him. But Percy Jackson was force with a heart covered with gold; strong, good-willed, but also shielded by thick walls. He was used to these names, since when you grow up with people naming you, you have no choice but to adapt.

In this society, every Imperfect had to adapt. When a baby was in the early stages of growing, the parents decided whether or not to do genetic-thingies them. Most-if not all-people who could afford it chose to, picking a style number from the many options. Still, it was an expensive process and the poorer people couldn't afford it. So if you were born without a style, or were born "Imperfect", as they called it, you were immediately labeled as a poor, stupid being. And that's what Percy was-a good-for-nothing, _lowly_ creature.

The other "Perfects", sometimes referred to as "Designers", snickered as Percy walked by, but the venomous laughs just bounced off his golden shield that protected his heart. Percy, however, still received _some_ sort of pain from their words, and only the few close to him could see his shoulders drop the slightest. Nonetheless, he kept walking with his head high.

He got to homeroom fine. The locker obeyed him and opened, Grover accompanied him to class, and Percy had sidestepped the outstretched leg of the "perfect" Luke Castellan. Percy sat in his assigned seat and waited to get dismissed to first period.

But before that happened, Annabeth Chase walked in, brushing him harshly without bothering to apologize. Percy scowled in annoyance. Why did she think she was so above him he didn't deserve an apology? Just because her father created an own style for her didn't mean anything. He was just as good as she was!

Except he wasn't.

Annabeth Chase was that one person nobody competed with for the simple reason that they _couldn't_. Her perfect figure and sharp grey eyes shot you down. Her perfect curls somehow intimidate you with their flawless glow. Even when Annabeth was little, she beat Percy (and everyone else) at _everything._ She was the president of Goode High School's student council, captain of the volleyball and track teams, on track to be valedictorian, and was asked out more than a million times by nearly every boy in this school. She had even caught the eye of the most popular jock, Luke Castellan, the jerk who loved to make Percy's life a living hell.

Annabeth Chase was so far ahead it was ridiculous for _anyone,_ imperfect or not, to even consider they could come relatively close.

And, because Percy had the crappiest luck in this universe, she was his lab partner for first period AP Biology.

Yes, it was not a surprise that Annabeth had gotten into such a class. Percy, though? That was strange, even to him. But the placement test was mostly about marine biology, a subject he _excelled_ in. When he was just a baby, he would be out in the ocean with the fish and crabs at Montauk. Heck, if _anyone_ was a water baby, Percy was.

But, all of a sudden, he wanted to run to regular science when caught under the grey eyes that bore lasers through his very soul. Percy tried to turn his attention to the teacher to refrain himself from hiding under the table.

"First project, class!" called the professor, Mr. Brunner. His wheelchair and odd attire sparked Percy's curiosity. Maybe he would have like this teacher had he not put him with freaking Annabeth Chase. "Find three samples of wild marine flora and conduct experiments of your choice on the specimens. This counts for seventy percent of your grade for this semester. Rubrics, instructions, and further guidance are place in the centres of your tables. Begin as soon as possible to be sure you do not rush at the due date. Don't do that. It not only kills your grade, but it kills your ability of procrastination for the rest of the year. Like to procrastinate? Don't do so on this project, or you might never be able to procrastinate again." Mr. Brunner grinned, winked, and let the class get started on their projects.

Immediately, Annabeth's manicured hands found the stack of papers. Her fingers shuffled through all of them and her eyes squinted in concentration. Percy stared, motionless, too intimidated and unsure to really do anything but look.

"So, are you going to sit there like a piece of shit or help me?" Annabeth looked at him disapprovingly. "Tell me, will I be doing all the work? Honestly, if I am, I will do it."

Percy blinked confusedly, because _oh crap_ Annabeth freakin' Chase was was _talking_ to _him_.

Apparently, the blonde girl with princess curls took that as a _no,you can do all of the work_. She shook her head. "Well, it's not like expected anything better of you people," she muttered over her breath, just loud enough for Percy to hear.

"Hey!" Percy snapped, breaking his silence, because this goddamn woman wasn't going to give him another label if he could help it. "I'll collect the samples. You design the experiment. We do the experiment together. Done. Kaput."

The grey eyes widened at his outburst. Inwardly, Percy smirked. Damn right she be surprised. Sooner or later, this girl would know that she can't bump into him and treat him like shit anymore.

"Fine," Annabeth said carefully after she regained her composure. Her eyes narrowed and regained their intimidating look. "However, if we get anything less than an A because of your negligence, it's _you_ who will be dead in the back alley."

She turned, smacking her curls in his face. But it didn't stand a chance of wiping that grin on Percy's face. He managed to surprise _Annabeth Chase._ And from that point onward, he decided to do his best to surprise that girl however many times he could.


	2. Of Stealing and Kale Salad

Annabeth was already having a rotten day.

First off, her father didn't bother to say goodbye or even acknowledge her very presence. Then her stepmother had "accidently" spilt marmalade over Annabeth's bacon and burnt her toast. Her best friend, Piper, was too busy to walk with her. In her moping, pissed state, Annabeth bet that the people on the street thought of her as a lonely being with no friends whatsoever.

Although, being the famous first "Wise Owl", style #818, signaled that those pedestrians thought anything _except_ that. Especially considering the way they gawked at her as she passed.

There was pride that came in being the first of a style. Being the original. Being the unique _first_. Although it wasn't quite pride that she really wanted from life. In fact, Annabeth wasn't quite sure what it was she yearned so much. All she knew was her _status_ wasn't getting it for her.

On top of the other crap that's happened to her in the last hour, Perseus Jackson was her partner for science. He wasn't quite what she had expected him to be. He wasn't a lazy punk that would let her do all the work. Nope, Perseus had _snapped_ at Annabeth, and the only thing she wanted to do when she left the science room was punch a wall. Though, she supposed, his face could the the punching bag too.

Annabeth walked home, trying to reach tranquility in the quiet air of walking alone. Birds chirped noisily, there was dog poop on the sidewalk, and broken glass littered the grass. Nope, no tranquility in that. Negative.

When she did get home, just as stressed and tired as before, she went to do her homework. That usually took a while, since she was in _all_ of the AP classes she could sign up for _and_ had skipped three grades of math. Better get cracking now.

Mounds on top of mounds of homework rested on her desk. Annabeth gulped at the sight of it all. Maybe she shouldn't have taken all those classes. Immediately, Annabeth regained her confidence and reprimanded herself. _Yes, you should have taken these classes. The valedictorian seat is basically yours. You can do anything. And maybe then Dad will see your real worth._

The lump of work on her desk shrunk, little by little, through time. Annabeth looked up at the clock tiredly. Almost nine o'clock. _Five hours?_ For _homework?_ Gods, and she still had one homework left. AP Biology. Design the experiment.

"Alright, Annabeth," she said, pep-talking herself. "You show Jackson when you show up with a perfect outline and he turns up with nothing."

Truth was, Annabeth _really_ wanted to wipe that smirk off that guy's face. She felt her competitiveness surge around him, her eyes narrow more and her temper run shorter. Annabeth wanted to punch his face in, knee him in painful places, and kick that obnoxious smirk off his face. Maybe give him a bloody nose while she's at it.

She swears, she usually isn't this violent. But Perseus was a bigot and Annabeth wanted to mess up his stupid face.

The outline comes out pristine with perfect penmanship and detailed drawings to complete. It took an hour, with all the detail, but the final product was worth it. She smirked. When Annabeth showed up to school with this masterpiece, his plants (assuming he even go them) wouldn't be able to compete. In fact, she'll put that little idiot in his place just with this paper. That thought brought a mischievous smile to the blonde's face.

"Annie!" a little voice called. Bobby rushed into the room, huffing like he had ran all over the house for her, even though he should know that Annabeth was _never_ anywhere but her room. Never. "It's time for dinner!"

Just as quickly as he had came, he left in a rush. Annabeth rolled her eyes and put down her pencil. Tucking the outline into her binder tenderly, she smiled. She was still in a good mood from thinking about breaking her partner's wimpy little limbs.

She came downstairs, dodging Legos and other various trinkets that would be dangerous to her feet. Matthew sits at the table, gobbling the food, while Bobby is snarfing his food from the couch, watching TV.

"About time you came down, 'Beth. It's almost eleven." Mia appears from the kitchen with food in her hands.

"It's _Anna_ beth," Annabeth corrects, though she knows that her stepmother won't ever learn. Mostly because Mia didn't care for Annabeth's preferences.

Mia purses her lips. "Anyway, the boys took most of the mac 'n cheese, so you get kale salad."

Grimacing, Annabeth took a seat. _Kale salad?_ That was, by far, the monstrosity of the universe. Pinching her nose, squeezing her eyes, she obediently choked down the poisonous meal.

"My money is missing." Mia comes out from the master bedroom with her eyes flashing. "Who took it?"

Matthew and Bobby shake their heads, though Annabeth knows it was probably Bobby. The little fright in his eyes gave himself away, though Mia probably wouldn't notice. "We didn't Mom! We would never steal!"

Annabeth said the same. "I didn't. The last thing I would do is steal from you."

"Oh, really, _Annabeth?_ " Mia snarled. "All you have ever done was steal from me."

The kale fell out of Annabeth's gaping mouth. _Steal? Her?_ No! She would never steal from a soul intentionally. Of _course_ Mia would think she took the money! All she has ever done to Annabeth was treat her like the spawn of Satan. In her stepmother's eyes, Annabeth was the one that ruined her image of a perfect family. Though Annabeth couldn't argue. Ever since her dad had remarried, she had been the outlier. The little blip on the end of the graph, the one that didn't fit with the other points. She was a mistake. She was a broken stitch in their tapestry of a perfect family.

Realization came upon Annabeth's eyes. She wasn't wanted. They didn't want her. They never had. Even her own _father_ had left her. Everyone had. Because she's a perfect but she's still _worthless. Imperfect. Useless. Ugly. Waste. Inferior. Flawed. Faulty._

She wasn't worth keeping.

Tears slid down her cheeks silently and anger built in her chest. Annabeth got up with her head pounding and tears blurring her view, wiping her tears with a napkin.

 _They didn't want her here?_

Then so be it.

Annabeth slipped out the house, knocking the kale salad over onto the floor as she strutted out.

/

 **A/N: And there we have it! Chapter 2. I'm thinking of switching POVs, though it probably won't follow a pattern. Next chapter will probably be Annabeth's POV too, and the next after that will be Percy's. I'm not sure. Anyway, the next update is coming either tomorrow, the day after, or the day after that. Review! ~Eeda**


	3. An Alley For Two, Please?

Maybe Annabeth should have thought this out a bit more.

Running away with nothing except some clothes on? With no food or water or even a _raincoat?_ What the hell was she thinking?

Nothing. Annabeth wasn't think of anything. Just the fact that she was _worthless_ and _everyone_ knew it. After all, nobody would abandon someone who was worthful

Rain started to drizzle, mixing in with her tears. She smelt like a wet dog and felt like one too. Annabeth _was_ a mutt. A mutt that nobody deserved to be with.

She raised her head to search for shelter from the rain. Instead of finding the familiar place of her neighborhood, she found a little plaza. How she wandered there, she never really knew. None of the stores were open at this dark hour and no overhanging was there. The alleys between buildings offered no sanctuary, except for the dark one far ahead.

Annabeth hesitated. This was a domino effect waiting to happen. You know, girl goes into dark alley, bad guy grabs her, mugs her, kills her, kidnaps her; everyone knows going into a dark alley by yourself is basically you just _asking_ for trouble.

Then again, Annabeth was not going to put up with this rain, that had progressed into almost a storm. Annabeth took a deep breath and entered the alley swiftly. She couldn't see a thing, even when her eyes tried to adjust. Her own fingers couldn't be seen in the alley made in such a way that light just got swallowed up. It was like a black hole, a never ending vacuum that sucked the comforts of reality up and left you to thrive without them.

And for the first time in a long time, Annabeth Chase truly felt peace.

But peace is not what she wanted right now. The quiet peace just mocked her in this fragile states. It just plainly reminded how lonely she was. No person who wasn't lonely sat in an alley and cried softly.

"Fuck!" a masculine voice exclaimed from elsewhere in the alley, a thud immediately following. "Who the hell are you?"

"What's it to you?" Annabeth tries to snap, though her voice seems more sad than snappy and breaks a little at the end. It just aggravated her more, even though it wasn't his (no girl could have a voice that low) fault her voice is like that.

If she could see in this dark passage, Annabeth would angrily slap this guy's face to the next alley.

Annabeth felt a thump next to her, signaling the boy had sat down beside her. "Hey, are you okay?" The voice's tone became comforting, empathizing.

"Does it look like I am?" Annabeth snarls. She should get out. This guy could _mug_ her. But her feet seemed paralyzed and her thinking was still fuzzy, so her idiotic self stayed.

"Not sure. I can't see my own fingers."

Touché. Annabeth rolled her eyes, though knowing the guy next to her couldn't see it. "Why do you care? Nobody does."

"Says who?"

"Says me." Annabeth tucked her head into her arms, prepared for him to leave her just like how everyone else did.

"I say so too."

"Excuse me?" Annabeth says, taken aback. _Did he just agree nobody cared?_ She had at least expect this doofus next to her to try to boost her self esteem. Instead, it seemed, he was pushing it down.

"Nobody cares. I'm a nobody. Therefore, I care."

She groaned into her arms, though a small smile did creep onto her face. "Ugh. Jokes. Positivity. _Disgusting_."

"I hope you're joking," the boy said. "I had cookies to give, but if you don't want them…"

"Cookies?" Her head shot up and her heart leaped higher than she'd like to admit.

"Yep." There was some shuffling next to her. Soon, a cookie with an entrancing aroma was in her hands.

"Are you sure? You don't have to."

"I don't. I felt like it. Besides, I guess I can kind of relate." A deep breath was heard and a pause. "Sometimes it feels like nobody cares about you. That everyone thinks that you're _worthless. Imperfect. Useless. Ugly. Waste. Inferior. Flawed. Faulty._ "

Annabeth's eyes widened. That's _exactly_ how she felt.

He continued. "And I'm not sure what to say. No advice. I feel the same, and this alley is my escape. Sometimes we need an escape from reality." He lowers his voice. "Sometimes I think of it as my secret lair!"

A bubbly laugh escaped Annabeth's lips. The clear sound surprised herself. She hadn't heard that noise in so long.

"Your laugh is pretty," the boy says nonchalantly. "You should really laugh more."

She took the compliment, smiling. "Perhaps I should."

"There is should or should not, there is no perhaps."

"Did you…just twist a Yoda quote?"

"Maybe."

Annabeth laughed again. She felt the anger in her chest and the furrow in her forehead soften and smoothen. The red anger she had felt disappeared in her chuckles. "Yoda fan?"

"Actually, I haven't seen Star Wars before."

Mock gasping, Annabeth placed a hand over her heart. "How could you? You are not worthy of twisting Yoda quotes!"

This time, it was _he_ that chuckled. Suddenly, Annabeth realized what was doing. Here she was, acting like she was best friends with a guy she couldn't even see. She should _probably_ reel herself in.

Then again, today she wasn't doing what she should do, huh?

"Feeling better?" the boy asks.

"Yeah."

They sat in silence, content with the darkness. Annabeth closed her eyes and fell into the peace.

After about five minutes, Annabeth stood up. "I should go home…"

"Okay." The voice seemed indifferent, like it was really okay. Annabeth had to admit, it made her a bit upset. He didn't care if she left?

"Hey?" Annabeth asked before turning to leave, mustering up the courage to says what she wanted. Even though _he_ clearly didn't care if they saw each other again (though Annabeth supposes they didn't _see_ each other anyway, so "crossed paths again" might be the the better phrase).

"Hmm?"

"Do you think that this alley is big enough for two tomorrow?" she asked, trying to keep the hope from spilling into her voice.

"Yeah," the voice responded, seeming happier than before, though that may have been Annabeth's wishful thinking. "I'm pretty sure it is."

It might have been raining even harder the time she stepped into the night, but Annabeth's smile was still bright enough to be confused with the moon.

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 **A/N: In case you haven't noticed, this fanfic will have minor cussing sprinkled in. Which is weird, since I don't cuss in real life… at all. :\**

 **I've decided that I won't be updating my fics every day. I'll still check this place every day, but I think my writing quality will be better if I take longer. By the way** **, I haven't watched Star Wars. I know, I'm not worthy of twisting Yoda quotes either XD. Review, please! ~ Eeda**


	4. School Is My Hell, But Home Is My Haven

"Ta-da!" Percy said dramatically, revealing three jars with plant specimens floating in their centres. "These plants are from various different parts of the world. One is from Montauk, not too far away. The others are from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Collected them in the summer."

Annabeth's eyebrows jumped high, her grey eyes widening. Percy smirked. "Didn't think I'd get it, did you?" he taunted.

The blonde shook her head guiltily before she could catch herself. Another point for Percy! It had been two minutes into class and already he had surprised the great Annabeth Chase yet _again_. He was doing better that he thought.

Clearing her throat while simultaneously avoiding Percy's prideful smirk, she took out her outline. Percy had to admit, the crisp lines and no trace of eraser marks made the outline look like pure perfection.

"So do we start today?" Annabeth asked, looking around. The other kids had barely started their outlines, only a few even having a specimen. And the couple that _did_ have specimens had some of the most basic, un-exotic plants that you could find in your fish tank. For once, Percy was _ahead._ An impish grin appeared on his face.

"I guess. Though if we took the whole _week_ off, we'd still be ahead of everyone else." Percy smiled at the thought of fooling around the whole class period.

"Uh, _no._ We're working. No fooling around, Jackson." The grin on Percy's face flipped upside down. Cue the sad trombone sound effect they always play in modern cartoons.

The smile came back immediately after. "On last name basis now, huh, Chase?" He was met with a rewarding rush when the tips of the slightly embarrassed girl's ears turned red.

The rest of the period was nothing special. Annabeth had started explaining exactly what to do and when. They decided to meet at Percy's apartment to do the experiment on Saturday. The blonde had left without a word hurriedly and Percy had left for English.

Now, _this_ is where things got interesting. Just like he had every year, Percy plopped into the seat next to Hazel and Frank. The latter of the two was an Imperfect, though Hazel was a Designer. But the sweetheart was still friends with Frank and very possibly had a _crush_ on him. She just lied that she was an Imperfect since no other person in this city had her style. Nobody noticed and only the ones close to her knew the truth. Hazel was a marvel, a true friend with a heart of gold that matched her eyes.

Frank, on the other hand, came from a family that didn't believe in genetic modification. You see, in order to genetically modify you, they're essentially twisting your genes. It's an evolved form of CRISPR that takes the things you were born with and makes them so you fit a certain image. Some say it snips your genes and replaces them with robotic microchips that change your allele. So if you were heterozygous you could become homozygous and vice-versa. As long your appearance matched the style handbook, you were good. Perfect. Designer. Frank's family believed that genetic modification would be the divider of our country.

They were right. But it's always the right ones that are scoffed at even when it is proven that the are right.

Frank patted Percy on the back. "So how was working with Chase?"

"Fine. It's fun annoying her!"

Hazel's head shot up from between her arms and she wagged her finger in front of Percy's nose. "Don't be rude to the poor girl! Play nice!"

Rolling his eyes, Percy retorted, "Well, it's not like she _doesn't_ always get the nice treatment. She has no worries, unlike the rest of us!"

"Says who? Who knows, maybe her life at home is crap and she cries herself to sleep. We don't know everyone's story," Hazel said calmly with a bit of sadness in her voice. "You don't know what she goes through."

"The chances of _her_ crying herself to sleep are next to none, Hazel," Percy remarked. Frank looked between the two of them, a bit scared to say anything.

Exasperatedly, Hazel sighed. "Just keep that in mind, Percy. Just keep it in mind."

Percy grumbled in his seat. Clearly, Annabeth Chase had a great life. Everyone knew that. Everyone. After all, someone who was the daughter of one of the most well-known genetic scientists that even _created a freaking style for he_ would have a great life. All he had was a good mom and a couple good friends. Many times, Percy would find himself thinking that nobody cared about him. He knew it wasn't fair for him to think that, but sometimes it just felt so _true._ Maybe it is true.

Percy bets a hundred bucks that Annabeth Chase never dealt with those thoughts.

In his reverie, Percy wasn't exactly paying attention to Mr. Blofis. Sure, the teacher was super nice and the class wasn't that boring (just super hard), but Percy was pretty sure his English teacher had the hots for his mom. He had to admit, Mr. Blofis would be infinitely times better than his past dipshit of a stepfather, Smelly Gabe. But that didn't mean Percy was comfortable with his _English teacher_ having an affair with his _mom_.

That would cause all _kinds_ of awkward. Gods, Percy didn't even want to _think_ about it.

But Percy forgot it all when he came home to chocolate chip cookies and the aroma of caramel apples sitting on the counter welcomed him, his worries wafting away. True, beyond his house may be hell, but at least Percy loved his home.

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 **A/N: Hope that was good? I pumped this all out today and my fingers are swearing at me. At least editing had gone quickly since I got Grammarly. It took a minute for all the grammatical errors to be fixed with that extension and then I just read it once. I recommend it for lazy people like me. Did the little paragraph I sneaked in there explain the genetic modifications a bit better? Tell me in the reviews! (Reviews to me are blue cookies to Percy. ME LOVE REVIEWS!) ~Eeda**


	5. Cliche, I Know, But I Love It

Honestly, if Annabeth could slap Life in the face, she would do it in a heartbeat.

Obviously, it was Life who put her with Jackson, the idiot of the century. The thought of him and his snarky grin and taunting words made Annabeth's fingers clench in a tight fist. She traced the pad of her index finger over the throbbing red lunette-shapes her fingernails had made into her palm. The cause of the painful rainbow of crescents across the inside of her hand was none other than fucking Perseus Jackson, the spawn of Satan.

 _That fucking idiot of a boy_ , she thought with heavy distaste. She tried to be nice to him and work with him, but _no_. He had to get her worked up and be an unpredictable little shit. In fact, Annabeth changes her mind about slapping Life. She'd much rather slap Jackson.

In fact, Piper had asked Annabeth during lunch about the imprints on her hand. Well, asking wasn't really what she had done. It was more like… _demanding_. Piper had this tone and voice that could make everything slip out of anyone's mouth, no matter how much they resist. "What the hell happened to your hand, Annabeth?" she had exclaimed.

Like everyone else did, Annabeth's lips just slipped out the truth. "Jackson was being a dipwad," she confessed, slapping a hand over her mouth and glaring at Piper immediately after. "Pipes, what the hell?"

Sure, Piper's talent came in handy many times, including interrogating Annabeth's little step-brothers. But when _she_ was on the end of the mesmerizing voice, Annabeth despised her best friend's gift. Like now.

"Jackson? Well, duh, 'Beth. He's an Imperfect fool. What did you expect from him?" Piper said between bites of her sandwich.

Annabeth frowned at her word choice. Imperfect fool… that's what they had called _HER_. That's what they had taunted at _HER_ , over and over until _SHE_ had enough. That's had what made _HER_ leave Annabeth, but _SHE_ had every reason and right to leave. Annabeth's expression became cold and emotionless as she stared aimlessly into the distance.

 _Maybe_ SHE _was still out there_ , Annabeth thought. Dear god, Annabeth hoped so. Maybe _SHE_ would come back, even though _SHE_ had promised not to "return to this motherfucking wretched fucking place of bitchy assholes." A small smile appeared on Annabeth's face as she remembered _HER_ profanity. Even when Annabeth was seven, _SHE_ hadn't been afraid to curse like a sailor around anyone nor anything.

"Looking at Castellan, huh?" Piper asked, a 'knowing' expression on her face. Although Annabeth was still pissed at her words, she hadn't known. She probably will never know either, but Piper hadn't meant to hurt her feelings.

Annabeth plastered on a smile. No, she hadn't been looking at Castellan. Fuck, if she had done that, she'd hurt even more. "Yeah, _no_."

"You sure?" Piper winked suggestively. "He definitely has the hots for you, 'Beth,…"

 _No, he fucking doesn't, woman. He's just hurting on his own, though he inflicted his own hurt._ Annabeth just looked at the red marks that ran across her hands and avoided Piper's eyes.

"...always staring at you with this expression on his face…"

 _Of reminiscing on past mistakes. Wait, no. Even after all these years, he probably feels no remorse. Luke, he just wants me to forgive him. No. No way in hell._ Her nails fell back into the throbbing indents on her palm as Annabeth clutched her hand into a fist once again.

"... like a lovesick boy," Piper finished, finally looking at Annabeth's slightly broken face.

 _Well, maybe that was true. But it's not me. It never was me. He probably doesn't even know he's lovesick, though. It's probably just like a minuscule nuisance his subconscious feels along with the almost nonexistent remorse. Or perhaps it isn't even there, like he's not hurting. I hope he is, Luke deserves all the torture and pain after what he did._

"Annabeth?" Piper interjected her thoughts with a worried and guilty face. Her perfect, manicured hands landed on her tensed fist, caringly pulling the fingers back. Piper gently rubbed the little wounds in Annabeth's palm that had only gotten deeper and started to bleed. "I'm sorry? What did I do?"

"Nothing… It's… it's alright." Annabeth closed her eyes as Piper took bandages from her purse. Caringly, her best friend wrapped her hands in the gauze. See, although Annabeth would not dare tell Piper some of her secrets and sometimes hid her real feelings from her, Annabeth truly did love her best friend. Piper cared about her and her heart was pure. With time and maturity, one day, Piper might be the friend she'd unleash it _all_ to.

And in all honesty, Annabeth would wait a thousand years if it means she could find someone she could trust with herself.

The rest of the day passed quickly and normally. Usually, it was home that was hectic while school, even with it's gossip group, was significantly less dramatic.

Just like yesterday, Annabeth looked at the mountain of homework on her desk with a pained expression. Fuck. This might take even longer than yesterday.

Annabeth gave a surrendering sigh and tackled the obnoxiously huge amount of work. Might as well start it soon. Besides, the sooner she got finished with this, the sooner she got to go see the alley guy again.

 _Alley guy._ Gods, that made her sound like she was meeting a shady drug dealer or something. Annabeth stifled a small chuckle to herself as she smiled at the preposterous thought.

He was anything other than that. Annabeth had spent a grand total of half an hour with this guy and already knew that he was different. It was strange, sure, to find a connection with a person you couldn't see.

But it was _that_ type of strange, the type that just draws you in like a magnet, capturing you in the thrillful rush, making you crave the feeling like it's a drug.

"Annabeth!" a sharp voice called from the first floor, breaking her train of thoughts. Annabeth blinked, quickly finished her homework, and walked down the stairs. Mia looked at her carefully, setting a bowl on the table. Kale salad. Again. Probably revenge for the salad Mia had had to clean up last night before Annabeth's dad, Frederick, returned home from the lab.

Patiently, Annabeth sat down, put her fork in as if she was actually about to eat the gunk, and waited for Mia to leave. Her stepmother squinted at her suspiciously, scanning her like her eyes could figure out what Annabeth was up to. Tough chance. If Annabeth set her mind to something, she'd do it. If that meant acting and lying, fine. It's not like she had a trust bond between her stepmother to begin with, anyways.

After what felt like an eternity of stalemate, Mia relented, spinning around to go check on her brothers. Annabeth let out a sigh of relief, murmuring, "Finally."

Yet again, the kale salad was abandoned as Annabeth slipped out of the house, pocketing her phone on the way out and grabbing a sweatshirt. Thankfully, today was not wet and rainy like before. Instead, mere chilly wind and a crisp cold air filled the night. Goosebumps started to form on her arms as she tried to tug her sweatshirt closer to her body. Annabeth rubbed her hands and looked around.

 _Wait a second. How had she gotten to the plaza again?_

Annabeth mentally facepalmed. _Fuck_. How had she found the place and how the hell had she gotten back home? It all seemed to have annoyingly drained from her mind today. Annabeth bit her lip as she rummaged her brain for something.

Nope, she had no idea of any of the stores there. No idea of the roads she took, or even if she took a road. Drawing blanks over and over again, Annabeth let out a frustrated groan. Damn her forgetful mind.

Then, all of a sudden, a lightbulb seemed to pop up over her head. _Duh_. She had a phone with her! Knowing herself, Annabeth couldn't have walked that far, so the nearest plaza must be where the alley was nestled. Cue another mental facepalm. Really, what was up with her these days? She's the original Wise Owl, she was supposed to be smart before she was _born_.

Annabeth pulled out her phone and quickly typed in "plaza near me". Many results came up, the first one being "Presucie Plaza". Annabeth tapped it and the phone gave her directions to the alleyway. Sighing with relief, Annabeth followed the little blue arrow on her phone's GPS.

Before she knew it, she was standing in the middle of the plaza again. Still dead and empty with only leaves rustling around. Whipping her head back and forth, Annabeth searched impatiently for the alley. No, no, no, yes. She hustled to the alley and slipped into the dark, turning off her phone.

"Shit!" the familiar low voice called, slightly spooked as if Annabeth had scared him. She grinned, a little bubble of nervousness she hadn't known existed burst in her chest. Subconsciously, she realized, Annabeth had been afraid that he wouldn't show and abandon her like everyone else.

Gods, this guy she couldn't see and had only met for half an hour meant so much to her it was pathetic.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow, though she knew the boy couldn't see. "Forgot me already, did you?"

"Nope!" the boy responded with fake uneasiness. Dropping the artificial uncomfortable tone from his voice, he added, "Never, Princess!"

"Princess, hmm?" Annabeth curiously asked. So that's how they were going to play? Nicknames, not real names? When she thought about it, Annabeth decided she'd rather never know his name. It was a part of that strange rush she got when she was here, the feeling that anything could happen. It was part of the mysteriousness of it all that oddly made her a little giddy.

"Uh… yeah?" His tone seemed slightly shy as he said it. Good, Annabeth thought happily. He was just as nervous as her.

"Why?" Annabeth inquired casually. Why did he think she was a princess? Annabeth swears, if it's because he thinks she's a dainty damsel in distress, she's gonna walk right out. She swears

"Well… uh… your voice sounds regal. You have this confident aura to you and although I don't know anything about you, you seem like one with too many burdens. But you turn those burdens into your pretty dresses that you carry with might, turning heavy responsibilities into the string of pearls that rest prettily around your neck. Though in the dark, when you think nobody can see, you weep your tears of silver and gold in hopes those tears take away from the heavy dresses."

"...You _so_ got that from a poem or book," Annabeth accused with a smirk.

"Caught me, Princess. See, you already caught a plagiarizer without knowing the book! You'd be an amazing queen."

"So that's what we're playing now? Princess and Queens?" Annabeth stifled a laugh. She could already feel her worry lines relaxing and the tension in her shoulders floating away with his jokes.

See, this was how the world should be. Where you have no visual first impressions, where people you didn't know cared and sympathized. Where a stranger can become your best friend in half an hour and you play games you haven't indulged in since you were a wee young girl. That world would let her live in the intoxicating strange feeling she only received in the alleyway.

"Guess so," the boy said. "And I am the royal lifeguard of the royal beach, where you shall swim!"

Annabeth squinted incredulously. "Royal lifeguard? Is that a thing?"

"It is now!" He paused before adding, "I've always loved the water. Even when I was just one, the water was my home."

Smirking, Annabeth loudly rubbed her hands mischievously so the boy could hear them. "Oh yeah? Then I'm calling you Aquaman."

"Suits me," the boy said pridefully. "I am a man!"

"I take it back, Aqua _boy_. You are anything but a man." Annabeth changed her position, sitting crisscross-applesauce like she had done when she was in preschool.

"You wound me." A thump echoed through the alley like the boy had thumped his chest in mock hurt. "I am so a man!"

"Whatever you need to say to make you feel better."

"Meanie," the boy said, Annabeth practically hearing the pout in his voice.

Oh, they were playing that game now? Annabeth grinned again. "Baby."

"Rude."

"Whiny," Annabeth shot back.

His tone became more and more playful with each word. "Bitch."

"Douchebag."

"Princess."

"... You do realize that that's not an insult, right, Aquaboy?" Annabeth asked incredulously.

"Yep."

Annabeth opened her mouth and closed it. She was rendered speechless, a rare thing even her closest friends couldn't do easily. Grumbling, Annabeth said with playful annoyance, "Shut up."

"Your wish is my command, Princess."

Annabeth sighed with fake exasperation, sinking against the wall to bathe in the comfortable peace that followed. She could get used to this, Annabeth decided. Closing her eyes, she rubbed her temples as crickets chirped in the night like a horrible cliche.

Though if a cliche life meant _this_ , then Annabeth would welcome it with open arms.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

 **A/N: Long time no see. A week is horribly long, don't you think? For the long wait, I belted this chapter out to be much longer. About twice as many words are hoarded into this fic. On a completely unrelated note, I've made a website where you can check what I'm doing! That way, you can see what I'm up to if I don't update for a significant amount of time. Check it out, please? It's on the bottom of my profile. Oh, and REVIEW MY LOVELIES. ~Eeda**


	6. Can't Wait To Get Rid Of You

_Shit_.

Percy resisted the urge to punch his fist into the wall. Just lovely. Quickly, Percy hauled himself up before anyone could see him. Swiveling his head a few times, he sighed in relief when he was sure nobody had seen his stunt gone haywire.

Gods, he was out of it, before he was even at school. It's not rare for his heart to sag like this at school, but walking there? That wasn't normal altogether anyways. Though, then again, this whole world lacked normal. A humorless laugh, almost a scoff, emerged from Percy's throat. Maybe that's what the world needed. A big old dose of _normal._

Picking up his skateboard and stepping on it again, he skated to school, his chest feeling heavier and heavier with dread. This was the place that hated him, that placed the anvil of dread over his heart. Even the shield of gold around it couldn't bear the intense weight. But it was an everyday thing, almost like breathing. His heart would die over and over when he arrived at school (aka hell), only reincarnating when he sunk his teeth into those amazing blue cookies.

Sally had had to cut the number of cookies he took to school in half. Recently, he had been taking extra cookies from the jar, one or so each day. They were under his bed in a tight baggie, waiting until it could be filled with the blue food that was delicious enough for the gods.

Why he was collecting them, you ask? No, it wasn't for him, nor you. It was for someone special, his friend, this one girl called-

"Percy!" Jolting at the random yell, Percy turned to see Frank shouldering his backpack on one shoulder. Hazel peered from behind him in one of Frank's panda hoodies that hung loosely around her. The hem of it reached her knees and it was as if she was wearing a potato sack.

Swallowing a laugh, Percy grinned, the anvil of dread raising just a teeny bit. "Frank! Hazel! My favorite pandas in love." He winked, smirking at the rewarding blush on Frank's face and the embarrassed expression on Hazel's.

"Shut up, Perce," Frank groaned. Behind him, Hazel hid her whole face in the hoodie of the panda jacket, making her look like a deflated panda with human legs. This time, Percy didn't even bother to stifle his laugh. He snorted and chuckled at their flustered faces.

"You suck, Percy. You suck so bad." Hazel tried to glare at him from under the hoodie.

It only made Percy laugh more, much to Hazel's obvious annoyance. "Gods, it's really hard to take you seriously when you're in… _that."_

The expression on her face was priceless and Percy started wheezing from laughing too much. Clutching his stomach, he doubled over in laughter and laughed until he was breathing like he had emphysema.

"You sound like Darth Vader," a voice interrupted. Percy looked over his shoulder and saw a scrawny kid with crutches at his side, wearing a geeky green shirt that said, "GO GREEN!" with a chibi Hulk standing in front of a recycling symbol.

Frank grinned widely in relief at the chance to change the subject. "Grover! G-Man! How are ya doing?"

The curly-haired boy squinted wearily at him. "Umm…fine? What were you guys talking about?"

"Nothing!" Hazel assured a bit too quickly. Grover leaned forward on his crutches in a dramatic attempt to look skeptical.

"Yeah, yeah." Grover turned to Percy. "What was it?"

"Oh, nothing," Percy said slowly as a mischievous smirk came upon his face. "We were just chatting about Frazel."

"Frazel?" both Frank and Hazel asked in unison. "Excuse me?"

Grover shrugged nonchalantly and leaned back on his crutches. "Frazel? Old news, Perce. _Old_ news."

A confused Hazel interrupted, saying "Will someone please explain what the heck _Frazel_ is?" Frank immediately nodded in agreement.

Not so discreetly, Grover and Percy gave each other a sneaky look. But before they could tease " _Frazel"_ more, the bell rang. All of them sighed, although Frank and Hazel did so in relief while the other two did it in disappointment.

"This isn't over," Percy assured with a playful glare at each of them before heading to class.

And, before he even realized, Annabeth Chase was glaring at him from the seat right next to him.

"So pissed so soon?" he snarkily remarked, leaning back in his seat with the newfound confidence that he never experienced anywhere but first period AP Biology.

Her glare deepened and one of her eyebrows raised fiercely. "Of course. After all, I am with _you."_

She had said " _you"_ with such distaste his confidence seemed to evaporate for a scary second. Did… did she really despise him that much? Surely she knew that he was only playing. He hadn't meant to make her think worse of him.

Then again, why should Percy care what she thought of him? Annabeth's opinion should only be taken with a grain of salt, anyway.

"Well, I thought at least you'd be happy to get to work," Percy said when he had salvaged enough pieces of his confidence to form a retort.

"Oh, believe me, I'm _elated_ to get to work. The sooner we're finished, the sooner I'm rid of you."

Again, the dislike and annoyance dripping from her words took Percy back yet another time. But this time, his nerve had broken so completely he couldn't think a response. His mind blanked and he _knew_ Annabeth was probably smirking as he scrambled to find the confidence that wasn't there.

They sat in silence and watched the other kids try to get stuff done. Most of them had barely started their outlines, though to even call them outlines would be an injustice to the word. They were more like messy drawings and scribbled words, complete with holes and stains from bad erasers and crease lines from being crumpled a few times too many.

"Well," Annabeth said, breaking the silence. Percy swore, the smugness of getting the last word was practically filling the room. "We'll meet on Saturday and do our experiment. After that, we can do our reports separately, okay?"

He nodded mutely, wanting to pour the water bucket's contents over her head to wash the damn smirk off her face. That bitch. He's glad to get rid of her so soon.

And for the first time, Percy walked out of a classroom with an angered look in his sea green eyes and a dangerously tight frown on his lips.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

 **A/N: OH MY GODS. THREE WEEKS. Don't kill me! I just had a supreme writer's block and a bunch of tests. Not only that, but this chapter was drafted about 3 times, and each version was** _ **completely**_ **different with whole different paths altogether. Cut me some slack! Anyway, enough excuses, the next update** _ **will**_ **be sooner. I can almost guarantee. Oh, and REVIEW MY WONDERFUL DEMIGODS! ~Eeda**


	7. Maybe This Could Be My Home Too

"Perseus Jackson! Get back in here now!" Sally ordered in that mother-like tone Percy loved and loathed simultaneously, jabbing a finger at him knowingly. "It's raining bullets and the wind's swirling up a storm! Just call and say you can't work today!"

Percy rolled his eyes at her gross exaggeration. "It's _drizzling._ And the wind is nothing! I'll wear a jacket!"

Sally's eyes narrowed, her brown irises sparkling with playful sternness. "Drizzling? It's not _drizzling._ This rain is about to wash out my garden. It's a _hurricane_ out there." She dried yet another plate with the dishrag before giving him a warning glare.

"No! Mom! It's not. Besides, we need the money…" Percy said, trailing off in the end until "money" was just another empty breath hanging in the air. He didn't mean to play that card, he swears. It just sort of… slipped out of him, he guesses.

Percy flinched at the disapproving frown that quickly overtook Sally's face, guilt pooling in his stomach. "No, Percy. We don't," she said softly, her eyes crinkling at the edges as the frown was replaced by a small smile, "I just want you to be safe, honey. We can scrape through."

"But… I don't _want_ to scrape through," was his weak protest that sounded like a little kid's whine. "I want to blunder through without the _chance_ of getting scraped!"

Sally smiled wider, the edges of her eyes crinkling even more. "But… I don't _want_ you to get hurt," she mocked, lowering her voice a dramatically large amount in an attempt to mimic him. "And if that means you skip one day at Marley's Coffee House, so be it."

Reluctantly, Percy gave in, going back to his room. He stalked up the stairs, his footsteps a little sharper than normal against the redwood. "Fine, fine, fine."

"Good." Thumps echoed into Percy's room as Sally returned to her room with loud steps. _Thump, thump, thump._

The clock ticked a sharp, wooden sound as Percy waited patiently for his mother to get sucked in her work. That was the thing with Sally- five minutes into her novel, and she'd be too sucked in to see nor hear a thing at all.

After the tenth tick of the clock, a hastily scribbled Post-It was stuck to the window, and Percy had grabbed his blue hoodie off the dresser without making a sound. He poised himself at the window, one foot on the ledge, the other on the desk, leg bent to hoist him up. Up, over, and down, he was out the window and onto the garden.

He landed on his feet, crushing one of his mother's daisies under his foot. _Damn,_ Percy cursed in his head _._ He'd be in hot water with Sally for that.

In a poor attempt to save his sorry ass, he gave a half-hearted kick to the remaining remains of the daisy to under the flower part next to it before tip-toeing around the building and disappearing into the street.

The plaza's conveniently not that far from Percy's home, so he doesn't get _that_ wet. Five minutes in a light jog already let him see the pale brown cafe nestled between the bright pizzerias. There it is-Marley's Coffee House. The one place where he belongs.

The night's cold, the coffee's hot, the sun is dim, the lights are warm but bright. It's like this every day, and Percy has gotten acquainted with the lattes warming his hands and the 90s music that floats around the small coffee place. It's not that popular, due to its location, but the customers that they got were always customers they kept.

It feels nice in the little coffee shop. It's a second home to Percy, only beaten by his real home. This is where he smiles and forgets his life, where nobody cares about his _style._ Just the coffee he makes them.

The forty-five-minute shift he has goes relaxingly - - - so relaxing it had gone in a blink of an eye. Soon enough, his apron was on the hook with Mrs. H was ushering him out, urging him to go enjoy the day. He can only smile and wave at the pudgy lady, not having the heart to say he didn't quite usually have a good day.

He walks down the street with a light smile. Mrs. H's jolly laugh bubbles behind him and the smell of coffee gets weaker, reminding him his happiness will soon disappear with it. It's a sad, pessimistic reminder, but a reminder nonetheless.

After he reaches the stop sign, Percy looked around. There, in between two buildings, was the dry sanctuary he needed to be. Eyes trained on the spot, Percy ran down, slipping into the dark, not bothering to avoid the puddles.

"About time," a light voice calls out. "I almost thought you ditched me."

Percy bit his lip to keep a bright smile from coming out, though he supposed 'Princess' couldn't see it anyway. "Never, Princess. Wouldn't even think of it."

"Mmm. Better not," she said with a teasing tone, though Percy could detect the almost-nonexistent insecurity between the syllables.

He softly smiled at it. So he _wasn't_ the only one in that boat. "It's our third meeting! It'd be a shame if I ditched on the _third_ one."

"You talk like this is a _date_ , Aquaboy. Newsflash: it isn't."

Red engulfed most of Percy's face, crimson down his neck and flowing to his ears. He hadn't meant… _that_. But, y'know, it was the alley girl, that voice he had sadly gotten attached to in a matter of thirty minutes. She was like him, someone he could relate to. Besides, her teasing went so _perfectly_ with his, so perfectly so that it was the few things that could make him smile.

His face felt cooler with those thoughts, his blush melting into his tanned skin tone. "Aww… I was so _sure_ I had gotten a hot date."

Was it flirting? Was it teasing? Percy couldn't tell. The line between the two had smeared so much that the blur was now unknown to him. Though, he supposed, he couldn't really be flirting with her. Percy didn't know her yet! _This is just teasing_ , he reassured himself, _Just teasing_.

He heard shuffling down the alley, like the girl had changed her position. "Must've been your dreams, Aquaboy."

"Still with Aquaboy, Princess? Is that what we're sticking with?"

"Still with Princess, Aquaboy? Is that what we're sticking with?" she mocked back, bringing a grin to Percy's face.

"Mmhmm. I guess so, Princess. Though, I have to say, it's biting my confidence."

She feigned innocence in her voice, retorting, "What confidence? You _have_ that?"

"Ouch. Just ouch."

"You baby. Would a Band-aid make you feel better?" Sarcasm dripped from the alley's girl's voice.

Percy's heart swelled with it, liking the stranger more and more. "Naw. I'm a _man,_ Princess!"

"Mmhmm, whatever you want to say."

"Thank you! Freedom of speech, eh?"

"Yeah, yeah, _sure."_

Time flew with each response and retort they exchanged, the two strangers in the dark, with only sarcasm to keep them entertained. It was cliche, he knew, to say that Percy already liked her. But he _did,_ in that best-friend way he loved. She was like Grover, just one that could relate to more, make him feel better. He pulled his knees to his chest as they bantered the night away, his new best friend and him.

Maybe, just maybe, this alley could become his home too.

 **A/N: In my defense, my computer broke. I couldn't keep my promise, because it was out of my control. :( Anyway, I was working on some 5k+ (hopefully) oneshots, and I'll be posting them on AO3 (which I'll share with you in a bit). On another note, I would like for you guys to not just ask me to update. It's rather annoying, see, for you to ignore the ability to give feedback or praise, and instead just say to update? Like, why? Please first, y'know,** ** _review,_** **before asking that, okay? Please, for Percy and Annabeth? Thanks, and I love you all! ~~Eeda**

 **P.S. (Oh, and PLEASE (ACTUALLY) REVIEW! ^u^)**


	8. Metamorphic I

Annabeth was sorry to say that she'd skipped into first period so giddily that someone asked her if she was high on drugs. She did, however, remember not being sorry enough to resist offering the person a stuck-out tongue before plopping down her desk just as slap-happy.

In retrospect, that had not been the best idea. It was only a matter of time before someone sparked a rumor that perfect Annabeth Chase did drugs.

Though Annabeth guessed that being happy was sort of like a drug. You just want more and more, more than the world can yield. But this drug, unlike others, wasn't hurtful. If anything, it was the opposite. It fanned you as you grew and helped you muster the courage to be more… yourself. It had no similarity to any drug she saw starring in the news.

Though she _did_ get it from a hidden stranger in a dark alley, so maybe it _was_ a drug. Who knows.

She bounced her leg, scanning the room aimlessly until Perseus plopped down next to her, his binders causing a quake on the desk. Her pencils rattled and rolled as she reached to stop them from flying off the, pointedly ignoring her hab partner's sigh and mumbled apology.

Annabeth readied her papers. "Experiment Saturday, this classroom," she said, deciding not to even spare a glance at her partner, "Have you been keeping care of the plants correctly?"

"Yeah. Exactly what you put on the outline," Perseus replied, "Word for word."

"You sure?" Annabeth raised an eyebrow, torn between being relieved or trying to give him a hard time. She should give him a hard time, just to match how he treated her the other day, but the strange dullness of exhaustion in his eyes made her think again.

" _Yes._ I may not be a design with _wise_ in its name, or a design at all, but that doesn't mean I'm stupid."

Perseus turned his back to her so she could only see the wrinkles on his shirt. Her eyes drifted to the strange redness on his ears- anger, maybe? - and stopped at his ruffled hair, which had a little residue of gum, as if someone had stuck gum and then took it out. Her mind pieced together a series of events logically, coming to…

"Someone stuck gum in your hair," she said stupidly, dumbly, _idiotically,_ "I have peanut butter for lunch."

Perseus glanced back at her. "So?" he asked, a little biting, a little curious.

"Peanut butter gets it out," Annabeth said, pulling her lunchbox from her bag, "Ask to go get a drink of water and go do… whatever in the bathroom."

He almost reached for it, _almost,_ but his hand snapped back to him. "Nice try," he scoffed, "You'd never help me before. Now isn't all that different."

She looked at him incredulously, disbelief glinting in her eyes. "What, do you think that I poisoned it?"

"Wouldn't be under you."

See, this is why Annabeth wasn't nice to people. She'll try, they'll lash out instead of taking her helpfulness, and she goes back to the wicked bitch even _she_ realizes she is sometimes. Annabeth's smile faltered- did he really think that?- before she scoffed and turned away from him, doodling on her paper.

Annabeth had just barely finished her crude stick figure when her mind started wandering. It kept tracing back to the alley boy like a paperclip returns to the magnet. So much so that Annabeth started comparing it to a crush.

Her ears heated up and her neck warmed. Maybe it was a crush. Maybe, against all odds, perfect Annabeth Chase formed a crush on a _guy she couldn't see._

It was irrational, stupid, and idiotic. Check, check, check.

She bit her lip as she thought about it deeper. She really _did_ have a crush on the alley boy. He made her happy, he made her tolerable. Sometimes, Annabeth thought, being around him made her love herself. Even if she didn't even know this guy's design, much less his name.

Yeah, Annabeth was screwed.

Perseus' elbow jostled her thoughts, her blush disappearing as her attention turned to a much more _disliked_ person. He seemed a little apologetic, a little remorseful, a little guilty. A small part in Annabeth's head sneered, _Damn right_ , while the other side, the side that probably had developed as she spent time with the alley boy, said, _It's alright._

"Hey," Perseus said, clearing his throat sheepishly, "Um. Sorry about… that. I was in a bad situation this morning and… I shouldn't have done that either way."

She paused, surprised, before calmly saying, "Damn right you shouldn't have." Annabeth saw his face fall the slightest bit before she stuck her arm out, her lunchbox's strap clenched between her fingers.

His face brightened, a twinkle returning to his eyes, a grateful smile hanging on his face as he took it and rushed to the bathroom. Mr. Brunner stopped him from practically falling through the doorway without a pass, and Annabeth couldn't help but laugh. A warm feeling layered in her gut.

Days ago, Annabeth wouldn't have dared help an imperfect. Why would she? It would only inconvenience her. And invite rumours, of course.

Days later, Annabeth realized that the inconvenience might be worth it, to see that smile and that expression on faces. Maybe _this_ is why people help each other.

… Maybe, she could learn to do that.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry this is so late and short! Only about 830 words, but this was crucial to the plot. Updates will be more frequent than… last time. And hopefully around 1000 words like the other chapters.**

 **This is dedicated to Da Girl There Reading. I loved and still love you, Thria. /3 I wish you could've lived to see the end of this story that you liked so much.**

 **Please check out my other story too! It's called Shards & Stitches and has a very different mood than this one, so please check it out! :DDD**

 **Thank you guys for sticking with me. This years has been hectic, but I hope I can still update again.**

 **xeeda**


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